Somebody on Twitter asked “How did we train dogs before
shock, prong and choke collars?”
This was “re-tweeted” a few times, insinuating that dog trainers should
never use these tools and suggesting that they are relatively new, torture
devices. At least, that’s the
impression I got. I could be wrong
but in any case, I’ve got an answer to the question and a reason to blog. Warning - long blog ahead.
Looking at ancient Egyptian, Roman and Greek art and
artifacts, dog collars have not changed much in form, only in material. Working dogs wore a strong metal
or leather strap around their necks to give handlers control over the
animals. Dogs who guarded flocks, or
were used to hunt or fight large, powerful animals (including man), wore
leather collars studded with sharp nails on the outside to protect the dogs’
necks during battle. Dogs that that pulled wagons or carried equipment wore
harnesses suited to the type of work they performed. Dogs were restrained with heavy chains and thick leather
straps. Dogs owned by the
well-to-do wore fancy collars.
Modern “traditional” aka compulsive dog training methods
trickled down from German military service dog training. Large numbers of trained dogs were
needed quickly during World War I and the fastest way to train them was through
the calculated use of pain. In his 1903 book, “Training Dogs A Manual”, 19th
century German military trainer Konrad Most describes humane training equipment
as a chain or leather slip collar (aka “choke collar”). Inhumane was the spike collar, a
leather collar lined on the inside with short, sharpened nails that, when used
properly, poked bloody holes into the dogs lower neck. Early dog trainers also
routinely used short, flexible and non-flexible whips and switches. The trainer’s foot was also used to
kick dogs.
In the 1960’s, Blanche Saunders, a student of German
military man Weber, took dog training to the masses and popularized our current
AKC obedience trials. According to
Will Judy, early 20th century trainer, the relatively benign prong
collar was disallowed during AKC obedience trials not because it was inhumane,
but because it was confused with the inhumane spike collar, still very fresh in
the minds of the public at that time. And so the prong collar, which can be a useful tool,
fell into disfavor and remains that way to many trainers. Had Miss Saunders been a protégé of
Weber’s counterpart, Hans Tossutti, history would have been kinder to the prong
collar and a different collar would be allowed in AKC trials. He considered the
choke chain inhumane. Hans founded the New England School of Dog Training in Boston in 1928.
Electric collars were brought to the public’s attention in
the 1940’s and were as controversial then as they are now. They were home-made devices
consisting of a 6 volt battery fence charger, a collar and 30 yards of sturdy insulated
wire. One end of the wire was
attached to the battery; the other, bared end was run through the collar so
that it made contact with a dog’s neck.
A ground wire was connected to the battery (for safety). According to a 1949 newspaper article
in the Spokane Spokesman-Review written by Spokane dog trainer T.D. Burger, Jr.,
the devices were effective at stopping dogs from killing chickens, chasing cars
or the mailman, fighting with other dogs, excessive barking and tipping over
the garbage can. As a child who
accidentally leaned her bare arms against an electric fence while trying to
climbing over into my grandparents’ pig pen, I can tell you how effective that
amount is at stopping future behavior.
It didn’t stop me from getting in the pen with the pigs the next day,
but I never used THAT side of the fence again. To this day I vividly remember the incident and still look
for wires and electrodes on all fences. BTW, I hid in the corn silo for a long time, vibrating
from the shock, afraid to ask for help for fear of getting in trouble with my
parents. I also speak from
experience when I say that today’s sophisticated electronic collars are a far
cry from a 6 volt fence charger and bare wire “shock collar”.
In the late 60’s, shock collars were being manufactured and
sold to the public. According to
another Spokane Spokesman-Review reader, a cougar and bear guide with a pack of
hounds in 1971, there was disparity between these early models – some of “good
quality” and “harmless”. One
manufacturer eventually recalled their collars due to a defect that caused
burns on dogs’ necks. A 1983
newspaper article in the Ellensberg, WA
Daily Record describes snake proofing with a shock collar by a trainer
after an earlier Life Magazine article popularized it. The trainer had no idea the amount of
current used on the dogs because the company marketing the collar “is
intentionally secretive about that” (not sure why so much archival material
about shock collars is from Washington newspapers). All trainers who spoke to the reporter insisted that shock
collars should not be used by anyone but experienced, professional trainers and
are not appropriate for every dog.
Electronic collar technology has continued to improve and today’s “good
quality” models have a wide range stimulation from a “tickle” that elicits
nothing more than an ear flick, a vibration, or a beep in addition to stronger
stimulation, making them a more versatile and humane training tool than earlier
models. I am not condoning the use
of electronic collars here; I am merely trying to point out that some degree of
hysteria over these collars is as much due to the public’s memory of early
shock collars as earlier generations was of spike collars.
The current raging dichotomy between “purely positive
reinforcement” and “compulsion” trainers has been going on for centuries. A look at old dog training texts shows
that there has always been a gap between kinder, gentler family dog training
that used food rewards and/or praise and compulsive, quick and painful working
or military service dog training. IMO, new dog trainers with limited
experience, would benefit from learning about the history of dog training, the
evolution of training tools and why some are considered unacceptable. Then, they should judge for themselves
how inhumane – or not - they are. The answer to "how did we train before choke, prong and shock
collars"? We used spikes, sticks,
fists and kicks. And we used
tidbits of meat, with or without the beatings.
